


In Every Reality

by isengard



Category: Young Avengers
Genre: M/M, au everything, multiverse stuff, pre series in the beginning, spoiler alert this is dumb
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-21
Updated: 2013-06-05
Packaged: 2017-12-12 11:50:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/811291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isengard/pseuds/isengard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A multiversal look at Billy and Teddy's relationship, the one constant across realities.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [theappleppielifestyle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theappleppielifestyle/gifts).



> so this is (kind of) based off the cover for YA issue 8, which you can see [here](http://mckelvie.tumblr.com/post/48940989476/8-link-to-cbr-article). chapters will be short, I'm just sort of playing around with multiverse stuff.
> 
> this chapter is set slightly pre-series, other chapters will just be at various points in their relationship.

“Hey, don't worry,” Teddy says, patting his back. His hand lingers for a moment, and Billy hovers on the edge of leaning into it. “You'll get the hang of it; you just need to practice.”

“They should really make a manual,” Billy frowns. A gust of cool wind pushes his hair back. It feels good, up here, sitting on the edge of the roof of his parents' building, the night air starting to lose its warmth, the city carrying on below them. “How long d'you think it took _them_ to figure it out?”

Teddy pulls his hand back. “You mean the Avengers?”

“Yeah, like.” Billy's frustrated, he tugs at the ends of his hair. “I guess it's different with Thor, because he's a god and all, but how do people even find out where their powers come from? Obviously Eli knows, because of his grandpa. And Nate knows.” He looks up at Teddy. “When do we find out?”

Teddy chews his lip. “I don't know.” A long claw grows out of his thumb, he scrapes it absently over the lines of his palm. “At this point, I kind of just hope I'm a mutant, if the alternative is that some crazy supervillain experimented on me when I was a kid.”

“God.” Billy's eyes widen. “I didn't even think about that. Or – what if our _parents_ are secretly supervillains, like those kids Nate told us about in LA?”

Teddy laughs. “Billy, your parents are doctors. They're not supervillains, come on.”

“Dude, you've met my mom. Master manipulator. She's private practice now, it's totally not that much of a stretch.”

Teddy raises an eyebrow at him.

“Okay, maybe a little,” he concedes, sighing and leaning back onto his elbows. “I just...I want answers.” The urgency is unspoken, but it's still there. _Before we die_. Because what they're doing is dangerous, isn't it? Flying around, fighting crime – Teddy's sort of bulletproof, but Billy's definitely not. And then once Kang comes – _if_ Kang comes – he doesn't see how they'll stand a chance, the way they are now. It's easy to get caught up in the thrill of things when they're fresh from a victory, stopping a mugging or rescuing people from a burning building, but on nights like tonight when it's just a short training session and being left alone with his thoughts...well. Billy starts to doubt whether he'll ever _really_ be a superhero.

“Careful, Kaplan.” Teddy's voice brings him back to the roof, he looks down at their hands. Teddy's mimicked his posture, their fingers are lined up neatly, pinkies brushing together. Billy feels something stick in his throat as he looks up to meet Teddy's eyes, which are blue and fathomless and catch him right in the center of his chest. “I see you in your head, you know. You have a face.”

“I have a face,” Billy repeats.

“Yeah, you get this kinda Chad Michael Murray squint going, and there's a muscle that jumps right here,” Teddy's other hand is reaching forward and brushing along the back of Billy's jaw, and Billy is warm, surging, “and then when you _really_ get into it, you pull your lip in right...yep.” His finger traces along the seam of Billy's lower lip until it finds the chewed patch right at the corner. Billy's eyelids feel heavy, he can taste salt on Teddy's thumb. Teddy moves his hand to cup Billy's cheek, his fingers sliding into Billy's hair. “Like I said. You have a face.”

“Do I have a face now?” Billy asks, voice low.

Teddy licks his lips, his mouth curves into a nervous sort of half-smile. “You do,” he murmurs. “It's one of my all-time favorites.”

Billy kisses him.

The respite is instantaneous, a counter to his misgivings about this entire thing. He _has_ to be a superhero, _has_ to take the risks and save the day, because that's what brought him here, onto this roof with Teddy. That's what brought Teddy's mouth against his, Teddy's hand curving around the back of his neck, Teddy's breath washing over his face, Teddy's nose pressing comfortably into his cheek as his lips slide over Billy's, needy, searching.

Billy stretches out further on his back and pulls Teddy on top of him, moans at the feeling of Teddy's weight settling over his body. Teddy kisses him deeper like he means to swallow that noise, to pull all the air out of Billy's lungs and literally leave him breathless.

“ _Ngh_ ,” Billy pants, pulling back and gasping, running his hands down Teddy's sides. “ _Teddy_. All right, all right. I think I – ” he reaches around and palms Teddy's ass, “ – _grasp_ your meaning.”

Teddy puffs out a laugh and gives Billy a look. “ _Really_.”

“I'm sorry, this is what you signed up for, I thought you knew.”

Teddy smirks and brushes their noses together, leans in further and kisses the corner of his mouth. “Don't worry, I knew. You suck at faking it.”

“God, I really do,” Billy mutters. 

“It's not a bad thing.” Teddy's words vibrate over his skin, sending a shiver through him. A tongue tastes at the hinge of his jaw. Billy closes his eyes and grips Teddy's ass harder, grinding their hips together. He's hard as anything, he can feel the shape of Teddy inside his jeans, responding, _huge_. Totally unfair.

Teddy pulls back and draws a shaky breath. “ _Christ_ , Billy, you're gonna kill me.”

Billy moans softly, gripping Teddy's belt loops, searching for Teddy's shaft with his. He doesn't care, he _needs_ it, even if it means coming in his jeans right here – 

On the roof of his parents' building. Not exactly out in the open, but not shielded from view either; he can see into the windows of other high rises, that means they can see him too.

“Shit.” His head thunks against the concrete. “Sorry.”

“Better be,” Teddy says, pressing an open-mouthed kiss to his throat and shifting sideways away from him. “I think your superpower is being the world's biggest cock-tease.”

Billy grins. “When I get this whole Harry Potter thing worked out, we're gonna have sex up here, like, _all_ the time.”

“Mm.” Teddy threads their fingers together, and Billy turns to look at him. “Romantic.”

He looks so completely content and sure of himself that Billy almost can't formulate a response. “Well, yeah,” he manages, squeezing Teddy's hand, turning further onto his side so that they're facing each other. It's not exactly comfortable, but Billy can't bring himself to care. “It'll be super romantic, I'll spread like, a shit-ton of rose petals all over and bring up a blanket and – ”

“Your cape,” Teddy interrupts, stroking his thumb across Billy's. “We should have sex on your cape.”

“My – really?” Billy cocks his head. “You like my cape?”

“I like _you_ in your cape,” Teddy replies in a soft voice. “You're a fucking sexy superhero, all that spandex, and then the cape, it's like – hard to explain, but it's really, _really_ hot.”

“So _that's_ why you like me,” Billy sighs, holding Teddy's eyes so he knows he's teasing. “Should've known it was just my ass in spandex.”

“Not just your ass; your thighs, too.” Teddy laughs at Billy's mock-offended expression. “No, c'mon. You know.”

Billy does know, because he feels it too, he's felt it since the moment he laid eyes on Teddy. It's dizzying to think that Teddy felt the same, that Teddy's been right there with him every step of the way, that they were both oblivious to it and drowning in it at the same time.

He _knows_ , but he says, “You should tell me about it anyways.”

Teddy gives him a fond, only mildly exasperated look. “Want me to tell you about your eyes, is that it?”

“You can start there,” Billy agrees, grinning impishly. “I don't have curfew for another half hour.”

“It's pretty crazy,” Teddy says after a moment, looking down where their hands are still twined together. “I get this feeling around you, you know? Like...a weight off, or something.” He pauses, swallows. “It's how I felt the first time I saw you. I spent all this time _looking_ for things, like my dad, or myself, or the answers, like you were saying before, there's always a piece missing, I feel like I'm not seeing the whole picture.”

“Like a blind spot,” Billy says, remembering. Eli'd yelled at him a week back, after a near miss with an armed robbery, saying _you have to get a grip, Asgardian, quit chasing after Hulkling and do the fucking job, he's a big blind spot for you and it's gonna get you killed_. And honestly, he was right. Teddy is his blind spot, his weakness. And Billy is unrepentantly glad for it.

“Kind of,” Teddy nods. “Except – it's not anymore, because it's you.”

Billy shuffles closer and presses his face into Teddy's shoulder, inhaling deeply. “I think I needed you,” he says.

Teddy's hand glides down his back, pulling him in, an anchor. “I think you would've found me,” he says, voice muffled in Billy's hair. “I think we would've found each other. Even without the whole Nate thing, even if there was no such _thing_ as superheroes.”

If they could see the stars, Billy would wonder more about the vastness of space and time, about other worlds where superheroes didn't exist, about other Billys and other Teddys finding each other in other ways. But it's New York, and the only stars he ever sees are in the mural on the alley wall outside his window, the night sky and the sea and hundreds of boats.

Teddy says, “You okay?”

Billy realizes he's been quiet for several minutes. “Yeah,” he says, clearing his throat. “My butt is kind of sore.”

Teddy is uncharacteristically unresponsive, and Billy groans. “You _know_ what I mean.”

“I didn't even say anything.”

Billy glares up at him. “You had a face.”

“You weren't even looking at me!”

“I don't have to look at you to know you have a face, Teddy Altman.” Billy pushes himself into a sitting position and tries not to let his eyes wander over Teddy's body when he does the same, muscles pulling and flexing as he moves. “This is like, some destiny shit. I can _sense_ when you're having a face.”

Teddy grins, slow and easy. “Ah, yes. The Force is strong with you.”

“It's not, but you know what, it _will_ be, and then you'll be sorry,” Billy retorts.

“Nah, not a chance. That I'll be sorry, I mean.”

Billy laughs. “Can't apologize for fate, I guess.”

“Totally out of our control, nothing to be done,” Teddy agrees. “Hey, I have an idea.”

“Does it involve making out until my curfew is up in ten minutes?”

Teddy doesn't reply, just cards his fingers through Billy's hair and brushes his lips across Billy's cheekbone. They kiss, certain and hungry. Teddy presses heat into Billy and Billy presses back until he's no longer sure where he ends and Teddy begins. 

There are sirens some blocks away, a helicopter in the distance, illuminating a squadron of more experienced superheroes taking some would-be terrorists to school. Billy thinks, in a world without superheroes, he and Teddy would just get to keep kissing.

They look at each other, and Teddy shrugs. “We'll catch the next one?”

Billy climbs into Teddy's lap, takes his face in his hands. “Yeah, let's do that.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cadet!verse. I decided to throw Eli in too, because it seemed appropriate.

“ _Fuck_. I'm gonna – ”

“Are you – ?”

“No, don't – _stop_ , fuck, _Teddy_ – ”

The warning bell sounds. They'll have inspection in five minutes, exactly.

“I'm close, I'm close,” Teddy breathes, slamming back into him, making Billy's elbows scrape against the wall. “So close, Billy, I'm almost – _there_ – ”

Billy squeezes his eyes shut, grips the base of his cock like his life depends on it, and clenches down as hard as he can, drawing a long, stuttered, _sensual_ noise out of Teddy, whose hips have come to a heaving halt against Billy's, a pulsing inside him that means Teddy's done, emptying himself inside Billy, come that'll stick to his thighs later and probably turn him on in the middle of drills when he notices the chafe. They should've used a condom – well, they should've done a lot of things, like not wait until mere minutes before inspection to try and have a quickie in the supply closet, but training is exhausting enough without having to carve an extra thirty minutes out of each day to spend a little quality naked time with his boyfriend.

Billy's legs are shaking as Teddy turns him around and drops to his knees. His short hair is shiny with sweat, even in the dim light of the closet, and Billy can see the bob in his throat as his mouth falls open, the unconcealed want in his eyes. His fingers return to Billy's ass, three of them, pumping, stroking over his prostate, and Billy manages to drag his fist over his cock twice before he _loses_ it, coming so hard his vision swims. Teddy catches it in his mouth greedily, and Billy sways at the sight of his come dribbling over Teddy's lips, smearing on his chin before Teddy's tongue darts out to lap it up.

“Wow.” Billy stares down at him, feeling a lopsided grin take over his face. “I think that was the best one yet.”

“Mm,” Teddy agrees, sliding his fingers out of Billy and wiping them on the wall. “We do pretty well under pressure, I have to say.”

“How much time do we have?”

“Minute and a half?” Teddy looks at his watch. “Two and a half, okay. You want to go first?”

“Yeah. Give me like, twenty seconds,” Billy groans, bracing his palms against the wall. “Christ. Really glad I made my bed before this.”

Teddy's quiet for a moment, and then he says, “Do you think they'll suspect anything?”

“No,” Billy lies. They _do_ suspect, they've told him as much, cornered him when Teddy hasn't been around. It's the one reason he's glad they're so closely supervised in training. “Just tell 'em we went for a run, like always.”

“Okay,” Teddy says, and Billy hears the concern in his voice. He leans in and kisses Billy, tender and simple. Billy can taste himself still painted on Teddy's lips, and he has to fight the urge to lean in and lick whatever's left out of Teddy's mouth. There's no time. There's never any fucking time here, in Avengers Corps Training.

Billy sets his hand on the door. “I love you.”

“I love you,” Teddy echoes, brushing his fingers through the back of Billy's hair. It's the last familiar touch he'll get that day, unless they get an assignment that allows them to be alone.

Billy slips out of the closet and into the back door of the dormitory, somehow finding the energy to jog briskly back to his bunk. He strips out of his sweaty shirt and puts on a clean one, gets his pants buttoned and boots laced in record time.

“Cutting it close, huh Kaplan?” sneers a voice behind him. Billy doesn't turn around. He'd prefer not to have to look at Kessler's ugly mug this soon after getting off.

“Took a longer route,” Billy says shortly. “Didn't realize you were keeping tabs.”

Another lie. Kessler's been keeping frighteningly close tabs on Billy's comings and goings, and it's only Billy's tendency towards brazen duplicity that's keeping his secret safe. He looks over his shoulder and adds, “I mean, I'm flattered, but like I've told you, I don't really swing that way.”

In timing he couldn't've arranged better, Bradley and Richards both emerge from the bathroom to make their beds before Kessler can get worked up into a roid-rage and take a swing at him. Bradley spots him and frowns. “Where's Altman?”

Billy shrugs. “The fuck should I know? Dude can't keep up.” He takes a sip from his canteen, and with fifteen seconds to spare, Teddy walks in, dressed but somewhat winded.

“You take the long route too, Altman?” Norris asks from his bunk. The tone in his voice sets Billy's teeth on edge. Norris keeps an eye on Teddy the same way Kessler keeps an eye on Billy, but there's something _sinister_ about it, a calculated quality that makes his skin crawl.

Teddy kicks his laundry bag under his bed and frowns. “Huh?”

Billy forces himself to laugh. “Yeah, right. If Altman took my route, we'd see him back here sometime next week.”

Richards laughs too. “Give it a rest, man. You've barely got five seconds on me for the mile.”

“In your dreams, Richards.”

Bradley bolts upright and faces the door as Billy's about to say something else sarcastic about Richards' mile time, and they all snap to attention as Lieutenant Barnes walks in. He looks between their bunks, nods, and says, “Cadets, you're dismissed for breakfast. We'll see you in the hall at 0800.”

Barnes is fucking terrifying in the field, but his disdain for Corps regulation makes him pretty easy for inspections. He looks them up and down as they file out the door, and Billy notices that Teddy keeps his eyes averted.

“Cadet,” Barnes says sharply, making Teddy come to a halt. “Tuck in your shirt.”

“Yes, sir.” Teddy's voice is quiet, he quickly shoves his t-shirt into his pants.

“And get that chin up.” Barnes' voice is mild, but there's a danger lurking underneath. “Keep staring at the floors, you'll be cleaning 'em.”

Teddy nods again. “Sir.”

Billy makes it a point to keep steady eye contact with Barnes as he passes. Barnes doesn't say a word to him.

Breakfast is a quiet affair, like always. Most people are too busy stuffing their faces to talk much, not yet caffeinated enough to start gossiping or talking shit. Billy sits between Teddy and Richards, he keeps his knee pressed against Teddy's under the long table. Teddy's arm brushes against his when he reaches forward to grab the juice, and Billy tries to conceal the shudder that goes through him. He sees Kessler watching with narrowed eyes, and decides to meet him head-on.

He turns to Teddy. “So, you enjoy eating my dust this morning?”

Teddy seems to choke a little on his bacon. “Sure, if that's what you wanna call it.” He swallows, grins. “I think I'm pretty close to catching you out there.”

God, he's so fucking gorgeous Billy wants to _die_. “You wish,” he snorts. He jerks his head sideways. “Richards has been trying for months, and look where that's got him.”

Teddy raises his eyebrows. “I dunno, I like my chances. You give it all away up front.” He exchanges a look with Richards. “Maybe we've got a secret strategy you don't know about yet.”

Billy shovels a piece of toast into his mouth. “I'd pay to see that.”

“Yeah?” Teddy's amused, they're straying too close to innuendo, but Billy doesn't care. “Keep talking, and you won't have to.”

“Can't run forever, Kaplan,” Kessler says, exchanging a look with Norris. “Moving targets aren't that much harder to hit.”

Teddy tenses next to him, Billy feels him go rigid where their knees are touching. He takes a thick bite of eggs and adopts a lazy smirk. “Gotta quit sweet-talking me in front of the guys, Kessler. Wait 'till we're alone.”

Bradley gives him a severe look, and he shrugs and turns back to his food. Teddy doesn't relax for the rest of the meal, and Billy's breakfast sits very poorly in his stomach as they scrape their plates and file outside to start drills.

In the middle of their lineup, Lieutenant Wilson walks up and says something in an undertone to Barnes, who laughs. “Bradley!” he calls.

Bradley salutes and steps forward. “Sir.”

“Major Danvers is landing on the strip at 0900 to attend a meeting with the Secretary of Defense. We need a Jeep washed and gassed up, ready to go at the runway when she gets in. Think you can handle that?”

Bradley nods. “Yes sir, it'd be my pleasure.”

Barnes grins and pats him on the back. “There you go. Take someone with you, uh – Kaplan!” He motions to Billy. “You're with Bradley. Be back in one hour, less, if you can.”

“Got it,” Billy says. “Sir.”

They find out why Barnes was laughing almost immediately. The Jeeps are all _filthy_ , practically unrecognizable from their last drive through the clay fields, and it takes them almost forty minutes to get all the gunk off. Eventually, though, the car is spotless, and Billy sprawls in the backseat while Bradley watches the fuel gauge.

“You should be careful,” Bradley says, so casually Billy almost doesn't realize he's addressing him. “With Kessler, I mean. He's really got it out for you.”

Billy sighs. “Yeah, tell me about it. Wish I knew what I did to piss him off, besides showing his ass up in running drills.”

Bradley turns and gives him a serious look. “He knows about you.”

Billy's heart hammers, but he keeps his expression neutral as he pushes up onto his elbows. “Knows what?”

“ _Billy_. Come on.”

“ _Eli_.” His mouth is dry, they _never_ use first names. “I honestly have no idea what you're – ”

“He knows you're gay.”

Billy instinctively casts around, looking for anyone else who might've heard. “I'm _not_ – ”

“I've seen you and Altman, okay?” Bradley looks apologetic, at least. “I know – I know you're like, together, or whatever. It's cool, I swear, I have no problem with it. I actually think it's really fucked up that you guys can't go public with it; you seem really...good, I guess.” He flushes and shoves his hands in his pockets. “You don't have to lie, it's okay. I'm not judging.”

Billy lets out a long breath. “Huh.” It's strange, on the one hand, he's been called a fag and a cocksucker and all kinds of colorful names by Kessler and his crowd, just bullying for the sake of bullying, as far as he can tell, and then on the other hand, Bradley's just told him, “you're gay,” like it's a fact he read in a textbook, no doubt, no punchline. There's no question in Billy's mind that the second one is far, far worse.

He is _fucked_.

“Well,” he continues, “I guess the jig is up.” His mind is racing, a thousand chaotic, frightening thoughts all bombarding him at once. He waits for Bradley to replace the fuel pump and climb back into the Jeep before asking, “Who else knows?”

“We don't really talk about it,” Bradley shrugs, looking back at him. “I don't think Richards knows, or if he does, he doesn't care. Only one I ever hear running his mouth about it is Kessler.”

“God damn.” Billy's sweating, it's not from the heat. “Can't believe I was worried about getting blown up in Afghanistan or some shit. Kessler's gonna kill me before we even finish training.”

“He won't.” Bradley's voice is dark. “One, he won't go near Altman 'cause he knows he'll get his ass kicked. Two, I'll knock his fucking teeth out if he tries.”

Billy chews his lip. “Why are you even telling me this stuff?” He's always figured Bradley for a by-the-book kinda guy, and, well. “You should just turn us in. Get us thrown out.”

Bradley drives onto the airstrip, parks, and stares out the windshield. “My grandpa was a Captain, during World War II,” he says. Billy sits up to listen. “No one really knows about it, because his company was Classified. All black soldiers, sent behind enemy lines for nine months.” His knuckles flex on the steering wheel. “No one expected them to come back, but my grandpa did. If he was white, they'd have made him a war hero on the spot. But instead, he had to wait fifty fucking years before they called him to Washington and gave him the Medal.”

Billy stares at his shoes. “Jesus.”

“I kind of hate the Corps,” Bradley says dully. “Most days, I don't even know what I'm doing here. Trying to make him proud, I guess.”

“There's been a lot of days when I almost recused myself,” Billy confesses. “Me and Teddy; we thought about just taking off a few times, back when we first got together.”

“Yeah, well, I don't blame you.” Bradley glances up at the sky. Major Danvers' helicopter is coming in fast. “I know it's against regulation or whatever, but honestly, I don't give a fuck. Altman's a good guy, and so are you. I'm not gonna tell anyone.”

“Thanks, man,” Billy says, trying to sound as sincere as possible. He's still edgy over the news about Kessler, but Bradley's right about one thing. Teddy's the strongest in their class, and Kessler's not quite stupid enough to try and throw down with him. Maybe he'll survive cadet training after all.

The sound of the approaching Apache makes further conversation impossible, which Billy is somewhat grateful for. They stand at attention as Major Danvers climbs out of the cockpit and shakes her hair out, handing her helmet off to the new pilot and receiving a thick manilla envelope in exchange. The other pilot thumbs in their direction, and Billy tries valiantly not to appear starstruck as she walks up to them.

“At ease, cadets. This my ride?”

“Yes, Major,” Bradley replies. Billy elects to remain silent and fix his eyes on a point over her shoulder.

“Sweet. Looks good, boys.” She flashes them a grin. “Hop in; I'll give you a ride back to camp.”

Billy and Bradley exchange uncertain glances. Bradley starts to say, “That's all right, Major, we can just – ”

“Get _in_ , cadets. Who're you supposed to be training with right now?”

Billy checks his watch. “Captain Rogers, Major.”

“Perfect, I need to talk to him anyways.”

When they're back on the training field and lining up for drills, Billy takes his usual place next to Teddy and brushes their hands together, the barest of squeezes. “Did you see who I rode here with?”

“Ugh, _yes_. I can't believe you got to ride with _Danvers_ ,” Teddy whispers, looking at him almost reverently. “You lucked out, jeez.”

“Tell me about it.” He lowers his voice even more. “We need to talk, later. It's not bad,” he adds to Teddy's apprehensive expression. Bradley catches his eye a little ways down the line, and Billy nods, a silent _thank you_. “Might be good, actually.”

Teddy raises an eyebrow. “I checked the schedule. We have final formation half an hour early tonight.”

“Seriously? _Awesome_ ,” Billy breathes. They both straighten as Captain Rogers turns his attention on them. “Meet me behind the track afterwards; we'll talk fast and then get to more important things.”

Teddy doesn't reply, but the sudden flush down his neck is all the answer Billy needs.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wild West!verse
> 
> (I don't know oh god)

_Crack_.

Teddy opens one eye. No sense getting riled if it's just a small animal, a jackrabbit in the brush or a raccoon looking to steal some scraps. His fire's burned down to the embers, not much of a beacon out here on the hillside – you'd have to be looking real hard, and Teddy's fairly certain no one would risk coming to look for him out here.

 _Crack_.

Both eyes open, then. Could still be an animal, maybe a clumsy one like a possum, but he fits his hand around his revolver just in case. He eases up into a sitting position from where he's been comfortably spread out on his sleeping mat, back against a large rock, and waits.

It's times like this he's glad he falls asleep with his boots on.

He glances at Marv, who hasn't so much as batted an ear, dozing away under the low branches of a tree. Not that Marv's lack of alarm means a damn thing. Useless fucking animal.

 _Crack_.

He sighs.

“If you think you're sneaking up on me, you've got another thing coming.”

A stifled yelp and a sudden rustling sound make him smirk to himself. Good, he startled them. “Might as well come on out. You can run, but I'm warning, I'm a pretty good shot, even in the dark.”

A man's voice says, “I'm not armed, don't shoot,” and Teddy gets to his feet as a lean figure steps out of the shadow of the brush and into the moonlight.

Embarrassingly, Teddy's first thought is, _fuck_. The guy's attractive, beautiful, really, in a way Teddy's not sure he's ever seen. His dark hair is unkempt and falling into his face, his frame is muscled but wiry, and there's a wariness to his stance that reminds Teddy of a spooked horse, ready to bolt at a moment's notice. He's not familiar, not at _all_ , which is even more unusual. 

He keeps his gun out and steps forward. “I take it Norris didn't send you.”

The guy narrows his eyes. “Who the fuck is Norris?”

Now it's Teddy's turn to be wary. “'Who's Norris?'” he repeats. “The goddamn sheriff, that's who. Who're _you_?”

“All right, all right,” the guy says, making a placating gesture. Teddy steps forward, gazing at him expectantly. It might be a mistake, getting this close, but his legs are moving without his permission, drawing him toward the other man as naturally and certainly as the pull of gravity. 

The guy's eyes are wide, lips parted, breath stilled. _Definitely_ a mistake. Teddy digs his heel into the dirt and tries to look menacing instead of captivated. “Go on.”

He swallows. “Um. I'm Billy. Kaplan. I don't want any trouble, I was just passing through and I saw your fire; I thought I might try to steal some warmth.”

Teddy raises an eyebrow. “So you thought you'd just come crashing through the wilderness unarmed. Real smart.”

“I'm not – ” the guy puffs out a breath, close enough now that Teddy feels it shudder across his face. He really is gorgeous, almost otherworldly in the pale blue light of the moon. “My gun's with my horse, she's not far. To be honest, I'm no good with firearms. Safer to keep me away from them.”

Teddy stares him down steadily. Billy flushes, but stares right back, raising his chin and keeping his body tense. His coat is a little too big, the collar falling away from his throat to reveal the tie of a red bandana. Teddy represses the impulse to reach out and brush his fingers against it, get under the rough leather and find out what Billy's skin feels like, to trace the heat of the other man's body under his hands. 

Against his better judgment, he sighs and says, “Alright, then. Go get your horse, before the coyotes find her. I'll build the fire up.”

The flames are a little higher than he'd like them, some minutes later, but the night is unnaturally bright and clear, and he's still fairly sure that Norris wouldn't dare venture into the hills he's camped out in. Unclaimed land is a tenuous thing, kept wild by the legends surrounding it, feared by most in the settlement. There are no laws out here, the Cheyenne have migrated further west, he now only shares the land with animals and fugitives – the latter of which, he supposes, he should start counting himself among.

“Hey.” Billy stands before him again, leading a delicate-looking sorrel mare. Her ears are pricked, nostrils wide at the scent of Marv, and Teddy sees her flank quiver in a silent nicker. Marv, as expected, has yet to be roused by any of this.

“What's her name?” Teddy asks as Billy loosely threads a rope through the tying ring hammered into the base of the tree.

“Scarlet,” Billy says, letting the cinch out a couple of notches. “Yours?”

“Marvel, but I just call him Marv.” Teddy pats his horse on the rump as he allows Scarlet to sniff him. “Bought him off a Captain a few years back.”

“Nice looking animal,” Billy comments appreciatively. His eyes sweep over the fine lines of Marv's confirmation before settling on Teddy. Teddy looks down at his boots, runs his hand over his horse's hock under the pretense of checking for heat.

“He all right?”

Teddy nods, slow. “We had a tough trip couple days back. I've been resting him as much as possible, but the terrain out here's a good deal harder than he's used to.”

He doesn't have to look at Billy to see the question hanging in his eyes.

There's nothing to be done about it, really. He straightens, jerks his head in the direction of the fire. “You hungry?”

Billy nods, shivering slightly. “Starving, actually. I've got some rations – ”

“Save 'em.” Teddy can't _stand_ war rations. “Go get warm, I'll fix us some beans.”

Billy doesn't move. He's got that look again, tense, ready to run. Teddy doesn't know what to make of it.

He says, uncertain, “Or – I mean, _you_ can eat your rations, if you want.” 

Billy bites his lip. “I hate those fucking things, actually.”

“ _Every_ one hates them,” Teddy says emphatically, relief flooding through him as Billy's posture relaxes marginally. “Worse than dirt.”

“Yeah,” Billy says, a tremble of a smile visible on his face now. “Yeah, they really are.”

His hand is halfway to Billy's shoulder before he realizes it, and jerks his arm back to his side quickly. “Just, um. Go ahead and sit, I'll get a pot going.”

He fills the kettle with water from the stream, trying to keep the sand out of it and largely failing. His hunting knife carves a slit in the top of the can of beans, and the can fits snug right in the center of the kettle. If he'd had more time before they'd run him out of town, he'd've grabbed a pot or two, and a smaller knife. He'd've saved his mother's pictures, the ones she kept in a thick leather album in the wooden trunk he'd built her.

No doubt its all ashes now. Greg wouldn't've left him a home to return to, not after what he did.

“So,” he says, settling down on the ground next to Billy, maintaining his distance carefully. “What's your story?”

“Mm,” Billy says, mouth twitching in a smirk. “No story, just like I told you. Passing through is all.”

Teddy snorts. “Yeah, right. 'Passing through' unclaimed territory. You know there's a traveler's road about ten miles east, right?”

Billy nods vaguely, staring fixedly at a point at the base of the fire. “Came off it.”

“You a fugitive?”

“I'm not.” Teddy's pretty sure he hears an unspoken _yet_ at the end of that sentence, and then Billy turns to regard him. “What's _your_ story? You haven't even told me your name.”

Teddy laughs, in spite of himself. “I guess I haven't. Sorry, I'm just – I'm used to people knowing.” He extends his hand. “I'm Teddy. Teddy Altman.”

Billy takes his hand, and Teddy feels warmth creep through his veins and into his cheeks. “You a big shot around here or something?”

“Or something,” Teddy agrees, taking a drink from his water. “Was, anyways. Not sure what I am now, besides running.”

Billy keeps looking at him steadily, and Teddy struggles not to notice how warm and bright his eyes are in the fightlight.

“What'd you do?”

Teddy grimaces. “Shot the sheriff.”

“You killed – ”

“ _Shot_. I got him in the foot, wasn't aiming to kill or anything.”

“Shit.” Billy rubs his hands together. “What'd you do that for?”

“It's kind of a long story,” Teddy hesitates, but the look in Billy's eyes says it all, and before he knows it, he's telling him the whole damn thing. How he and Greg had been best friends all through school, how Greg had become sheriff after his father, how he'd gotten Teddy the deputy position after Teddy's mother died. How Teddy'd slowly worked out that Greg was bleeding the town dry, intimidating everyone into paying up for “special projects” that were nothing more than his own personal gain. How it'd gotten to the point where Greg arrested people without cause, held them until their families were able to pay up whatever exorbitant bail price he'd decided upon. How Teddy'd finally stood up to him, told him to step down, and how Greg had pulled a gun on him right there in the station.

How the people of the town, the people he'd _protected_ , had shuttered their windows when he rode by on Marv, running for his life with Greg's posse hot on his heels.

The beans are cooked. He hands Billy a tin bowl and a tin spoon. “Guess I'm a wanted man now. No place for me to go but out here.” He chews, swallows. “Lawless lands'll abide my sins.”

“Teddy Altman: Outlaw,” Billy grins, raising his bowl in thanks. “Has a nice ring to it, I think.”

“Yeah?” He doesn't trust himself to reply when Billy's looking at him like this.

“You'll have to let me know how it works out for you.” Billy's still smiling, but it's tight, grim. “I may be about to land on the wrong side of the law myself.”

Teddy kicks some sand on the fire and leans back. “That so?”

“Wrong side of your friend Norris, too,” Billy sighs. “My brother's in one of his prison cells. I came down here to bust him out.”

Teddy's stomach turns. “How much are they asking for bail?”

“No, no, I mean, _bust him out_ ,” Billy repeats, setting his bowl down by the dying fire. “We don't have money. They're not holding him for a payoff.”

Teddy feels his eyebrows lift. “So he's in prison for a reason.”

“A good one,” Billy admits, shrugging. “Tommy didn't _hurt_ anyone – exactly – he's my brother, okay? I promised him I'd get him out.”

Teddy leans back on his elbows and tilts his head up to look at the stars. He's not really in a position to judge, he thinks. Besides, it's not like the law's done much good for him anyways.

Billy shifts so that he's lying next to Teddy with his hands clasped behind his head. Their elbows brush together, and Teddy's stomach swoops.

“This the part where you tell me, 'this town ain't big enough for the two of us'?” Billy asks.

Teddy looks sideways at him and feels his lips twist up in a half-smile. “Wasn't even thinking it,” he promises. The stars above them are packed together like clouds, lighting up the heavens, making him feel very small. Back in town, he was always too big for his boots, but out here, he's been swimming in them from day one.

He's starting to find he prefers it that way.

Billy's elbow is still touching his. He doesn't know if Billy's even aware of it, but he doesn't want it to stop.

He says, “I think if I have to choose one Law to follow, it sure as hell isn't gonna be Greg Norris's Law.”

“Should be your own Law,” Billy says, voice low.

Teddy's breath catches in his throat. Keeping his eyes on the stars, he says, “Maybe I'll – ”

“Come with me.”

He pauses. Billy's words were so quiet, so rushed, he's not sure he – “What?”

“You said you had nowhere to go. You were wrong.” Billy's stumbling over his words a little, but Teddy hardly notices. “Come with Tommy and me. We've got more friends outside the city – they're not exactly upstanding citizens, but neither are we, right?”

Teddy laughs out loud. “Are you asking a former police deputy to come run with your band of merry outlaws?”

“You shot the sheriff,” Billy grins, and _God_ , it really shouldn't turn Teddy on when he says shit like that. “You're a wanted man, Teddy Altman.”

“You make a good case,” Teddy says. His mouth is dry. He's fairly certain he was doomed the moment Billy wandered into his camp. “Okay. Wait a minute.” Something occurs to him. “Are you just using me to help break your brother out of prison?”

“What? No!” Billy looks almost insulted. “No, please. You should probably stay here while I do that. It's not our first rodeo, believe me.”

Teddy leans back again, considers all this. “I think...I think I'm with you.” He yawns. “Never really fit in my deputy badge anyways.”

“Bet you looked good in it.”

Teddy stares at him. Billy makes a helpless motion with his shoulders and says, “If you want me to just – ”

“What kind of outlaw doesn't know how to shoot a gun, anyways?”

“Wh – I know _how_ ,” Billy protests. “It just goes horribly wrong sometimes, that's all.”

Teddy closes his eyes. He's glad it's dark, he's face is as flushed as it's ever been. “If we're gonna be fugitives together, I'm teaching you how to use a fucking gun.”

“Fine,” Billy says. Teddy hears the smile in his voice, and has to bite back his own.

The horses snort and forage in the background. Teddy's half asleep when he realizes he hasn't moved back to his mat, the folded blue canvas with the sheriff's mark emblazoned in the corner. Animals'll probably drag it off while they sleep if he doesn't at least roll it up.

He smiles at the thought, and drifts off to the press of Billy's sleeve against his.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> genderbent!verse. no powers.
> 
> also, batwoman is an awesome badass out lesbian, for those of you that are unfamiliar with her.

Billie squeezes her eyes shut and runs a hand through her hair, trying not to lose patience. “Mom,” she says again. “ _Mom_ , I have to go.”

“You can _not_ be late again.” Rebecca Kaplan's voice is severe and cutting, even with the sounds of traffic in the background. “It's extremely disrespectful to Joshua – ”

“I won't, I promise. I told you, I just lost track of time last week.” She glances up at the sound of a whistle; practice has just been called. Across the field, she sees the swish of Teddy's ponytail and bites back a smile.

“Five sharp, sweetheart. Are you with Theresa?”

“She's just getting out of practice.”

“Well, say hello for me.” Her mother's voice is softer. Billie's hand tightens around the phone as Teddy swings her lacrosse bag over her shoulder and starts walking towards the bleachers.

“I will, Mom. I'll see you in a couple hours, okay?”

“Okay, honey. I love you.”

“Yeah, you too.” She clicks her phone off and slips it into her pocket, standing up to greet her girlfriend, unable to stop the swoop in her stomach at the sight of Teddy's long, graceful legs streaming out of her tiny athletic skirt. The hem ends just below the apex of her thighs, and Billie imagines slipping her hand just underneath it, feeling soft, firm flesh on either side of her palm.

“Hey,” Teddy grins, pushing her bangs out of her face. Her skin is glowing with a light sheen of sweat, and not for the first time, Billie thinks it's incredibly unfair that Teddy can come out of an hour-long practice with no make-up and goggle imprints across her forehead and _still_ look like a goddamn supermodel.

She reaches for Teddy's hand, tugging her behind the tiered steel benches, where they won't be gawked at. “Hey yourself.”

She has another moment or two to gaze unblinkingly into the sparkling blue of Teddy's eyes before they're coming together, Teddy touching Billie at her jaw and carding long fingers through the back of her hair, Billie's hands finding their place on Teddy's hips and pulling her close, surging up with her mouth until Teddy's lips are pressed against hers.

There's a faint plasticky aftertaste that Billie knows by now is from Teddy's mouthguard, but underneath it's all _Teddy_ , warm and sweet and breathtakingly familiar. Teddy deepens the kiss, tracing a slow path across Billie's tongue with hers, and Billie feels a clench low in her stomach, a jump in her pulse when her back comes into contact with the metal rails of the bleachers.

“We should – ” she starts to say, cutting herself off as her hands climb up Teddy's back, feeling warm skin under the thin layer of her mesh jersey, “ – probably – _ah_ – ”

Teddy brushes her lips across Billie's cheekbone and bites gently at her ear, letting her tongue slide over the hinge of Billie's jaw, and Billie can feel her smile at the shudder it induces.

“You were saying?”

“I have no idea,” Billie sighs, letting her head tip back. Teddy's breath is hot and damp against her neck; she traces along the path of Teddy's spine, the edge of her sports bra – and _there_ it is, that unmistakable lightness in her gut that shoots down between her legs and makes her squirm in place, dizzy and wanting. “Forget it, let's just – ”

“I should shower,” Teddy says, sounding remorseful. “And change. So we can go.”

Billie considers this. “You _could_ ,” she admits, “or, you know. We could just go back to your place.”

“We could,” Teddy agrees, grinning softly. She tucks a strand of hair behind Billie's ear. “Can you wait 'till tomorrow for the new Batwoman?”

It's a rhetorical question. Neither of them can wait, it's Wednesday or nothing for them, and their shop's inventory of Batwoman, Batgirl, and other female-lead comics is spotty at best. Billie lets out a groan and crosses her arms in front of her chest, pouting.

“Fine, yeah, go. Fix your hair, whatever.”

“What's wrong with my hair?” Teddy asks in mock offense, leaning forward and pressing a quick kiss to the tip of Billie's nose. “I'll be back in ten.”

Yeah, Billie has a girlfriend who can shower, change, put her hair up and throw on a little mascara in under fifteen minutes. Billie takes twice as long to do half that, even though she's largely given up on trying to improve her appearance. Her dark curls never cooperate how she wants to, and the last time she'd tried to give herself a “smoky” eye, she'd stabbed herself in the cornea with an eye pencil. Not the most effective of beauty strategies, surprisingly.

“ – perving on the lacrosse team, no surprise there,” comes a singularly nasal voice like a bucket of ice water over Billie's head. Jane Kessler and some underclassman cheerleader Billie doesn't know are walking along the bleachers, towards the parking lot, a path which sends them right by her. Jane meets Billie's eyes, smirks, and elbows the other girl. “Pull your skirt down, so she can't try to look up it.”

The girl glances at Billie nervously and tugs at her hem, pressing her legs together tightly as she walks. Billie feels sick to her stomach. They stay silent as they pass, but they're well within earshot when Jane starts talking again.

“ – used to catch her staring at me in the _locker room_ – I know, right? It's fucking disgusting, they should make them change someplace else, I swear to God – ”

“You okay?” Teddy asks. She's frowning darkly at Jane and the other girl's backs, nose wrinkled in disgust. “Do I need to cut a bitch?”

“No, it's fine,” Billie shakes her head. “Kessler's just indoctrinating her underlings against me, it's nothing I haven't – _Jesus_ ,” she gasps, looking up at Teddy. “You look like a nerd porno.”

Teddy blushes and looks down at her shirt. At Billie's shirt, actually, a cap-sleeved Star Wars tee that's snug on Billie, which makes it roughly a size too small for Teddy. “That bad, huh?”

“No, not _bad_ , it's just...are you sure we can't just go to your house for a hot second?”

“You really want me to change?”

“In the sense that I want to take all your clothes off with my teeth, like, right this fucking second, yes.”

Teddy bursts out laughing. “I'm keeping the shirt on,” she says. “I like wearing it. It smells like you.”

Billie feels her smile go a little wobbly and forces her eyes up from where the shirt is stretched tighter than a drum across Teddy's chest. “Works for me, I guess.”

“Yeah?” Teddy takes her hand, and they walk towards the parking lot together. “Sorry I'm stretching it out, I guess that's kind of a dick move.”

Billie shakes her head firmly. “Hell no. Stretch it all you want, I am not complaining, seriously.” She can see the racerback outline of Teddy's sports bra through the shirt, the tiny pocket of flesh that juts out near her armpit, the curve of her breasts impossibly tantalizing. Teddy squeezes her hand, and Billie wonders for the hundredth time how she got so incredibly lucky.

“You want to get smoothies after this?” Teddy asks. “I'm super hungry.”

“Um.” Billie checks her phone. “Gotta be home in an hour for SAT tutoring. Mom's still pissed that I was late last week. So yeah, if we hurry.”

Teddy says, “Sweet,” and then they're off school grounds, striding purposefully along the crowded sidewalk. Billie keeps their hands clasped together, feeling safer and more secure with every step they take into the heart of the city.

For the most part, anyways.

“Nice _tits_!”

The guy's a few years older than them, leering out of a car's passenger window. Teddy doesn't look, but Billie does, feeling a swift stab of anger as his eyes rake over Teddy's body. “What's the matter sweetheart?” he calls.

“Don't,” Teddy says quietly, glancing sideways at Billie. “It's not worth it.”

It _is_ worth it though, nothing's more worth it than Teddy. Billie keeps her mouth shut but flips the guy off, glaring as menacingly as she can. 

He scowls. “Fucking bitch.” Fortunately, the light turns green and the car drives off before he can say anything else.

“What?” Billie asks defensively to Teddy's weary look. “If someone talked to me like that, you'd smash their freaking windshield in.”

Teddy says, “That's different.” But she's smiling sheepishly, and Billie knows she's not serious.

“Whatever. Hey, what are you doing Saturday after your game?”

Teddy shrugs. “Probably everyone's going back to Nat's. Her parents are out of the country – like, permenantly, I think. She's basically an emancipated minor now.”

“Yeah, living in a penthouse in the Village,” Billie says dryly. “Sounds harsh.”

“Don't be mean,” Teddy scolds her. “It is harsh, her folks just up and ditched her. Besides, I thought you liked Nat?”

“I do, no, you're right,” Billie backtracks. “She introduced us, I basically owe her my life.”

Teddy laughs. “Don't let anyone ever tell you you're overdramatic, Billie Kaplan.”

Billie bites her lip, grinning. “Nah. Perish the thought. So you're going over there, then?”

“I was planning on it, but I could be persuaded otherwise.”

“Because it just so happens that Rachel and Jordan have a school play that night, and Jeff and Rebecca are not only attending, they're _parent volunteers_ ,” Billie says, “which means they'll be there all evening, and I'll be holding down the fort solo.”

Teddy raises an eyebrow sternly. “You're not going to see your little sisters' play?”

“God, I wish I could, you know, but I have to study for the SAT.” It's the exact same line she gave her mother, although, with Rebecca she hadn't added the shit-eating grin at the end.

Teddy makes a slightly pained sound. “This is all very enticing, but I think I'm gonna have guilt. We should go to the play!”

“We should _not_ , trust me, it's the seventh year in a row they've done Fiddler on the Roof. You might as well just stab yourself in the earsdrums; little kids in fake beards can only take you so far.”

“So, a hot date with scholastic aptitude.” Teddy runs her thumb across Billie's wrist, smiling slyly. “You sure know how to woo a girl.”

Billie leans in conspiratorially. “And I haven't even gotten to the pizza bagels yet.”

Teddy groans. “You know me too well.”

Billie grabs the door to the comic book shop and opens it with a sweeping gesture. “All part of my girlfriendly duties.”

“I might need you to elaborate on those, on Saturday,” Teddy murmurs, tracing a line down Billie's arm with her finger as she slides past.

Billie just manages to stay upright. “Yeah, okay,” she says vaguely, making her way toward the new releases. “We could make that happen.”

Teddy's already halfway across the small shop, making a beeline for the sale bin, but she turns to shoot Billie a wink before she disappears behind a shelf.

“Tease,” Billie mutters, turning to survey the week's selection.

After a moment, she realizes she isn't alone. There's a guy standing next to her, tall-ish, brown hair, not much older than her. College-aged, maybe. She pretends not to notice him for several seconds; picking out comics in front of strangers has always stressed her out. _Go away_ , she thinks hopefully.

Naturally, he takes her inattention as an invitation to start talking. “First time?”

She glances at him quickly, trying to convey utter disinterest in her expression. “Huh?”

“You look kinda lost,” he grins, turning his body to face her. “First time buying comics?”

“Um, no. Not at all.”

“Right on,” he continues, undeterred. Billie looks toward the back of the store, but Teddy must still be digging in the sale bin. “What're you into?”

Oh, for Christ's sake. “I'm actually really into Batwoman,” she says, reaching for a copy of the new issue.

“Huh.” He looks her up and down unsubtly, and she takes a step back. “Yeah, the girl-on-girl action is cool. Kind of gimmicky, but it definitely has an audience.”

“Right,” she says, quietly fuming. His expression is benign, she can tell he's already written her off. Fortunately, that erases any last polite impulses she has, so she feels confident in turning and walking toward the cash register without another word.

“' _Gimmicky_ '?” Teddy asks incredulously as they wait on their smoothies minutes later. “Are you fucking kidding me? Did you tell him his face was gimmicky, and then punch it?”

“Next time,” Billie vows, reaching for Teddy's smoothie and taking a sip. “Oh, my God. That's not a smoothie, that's a creamsicle.”

“It's _my_ creamsicle,” Teddy protests with a laugh, snatching her cup from Billie's clutches. “Get your own, jeez.”

“Strawberry banana?” Billie offers, pushing her cup forward, making her eyes as wide and innocent as possible. “Sip for sip?”

Teddy shakes her head. “You're unbelieveable. You do this every time, you think I'd learn.”

“Hey, I have to get my kicks while I can, before you're impervious to my charms,” Billie replies through a long sip of creamsicle. “It's bound to happen eventually.”

Teddy looks at her for a long moment, so long that Billie forgets whatever witty thing she was going to say next. “No,” Teddy says finally, softly. Her fingers lace with Billie's, and something inside Billie's chest tightens and loosens at the same time. “No, I don't think it ever will.”

“I love you,” Billie says, as natural as breathing.

“I love you too.”

Billie looks down at their hands, feeling flustered in familiar ways, and aching in strange, still-new ways.. “I'm still going to drink like, half your smoothie.”

Teddy sighs. “Yeah, go ahead.”

“Hey, at least it'll taste awesome when you kiss me,” Billie points out.

Teddy laughs and leans in. “Let's test that theory.”


End file.
